First of all, it was never Kool-Aid – it was technically Flavor Aid. But, more importantly, Guinn says the tragic end at Jonestown was more complicated than mass suicide. He says, while some of Jones’ followers willingly committed suicide, many were forced — including children. Others didn’t believe what they ingested was truly poison given another similar incident that was a false alarm. Guinn says the end of Jonestown was actually a mass murder.

The Houston Connection

Regardless of the term used to define it, those events had a Houston connection. The poison was concocted by Jonestown’s doctor, Larry Schacht, who was a Houston native. The Peoples Temple helped him free himself from drug addiction and put him through medical school.

Dr. Larry Schacht in his lab at Jonestown.

In the audio above, Guinn tells Houston Matters producer Michael Hagerty who Schacht was, how he ended up at Jonestown, and his role there.

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Michael Hagerty

Senior Producer, Houston Matters

Michael Hagerty is the Senior Producer for Houston Matters. He has a degree in journalism from Abilene Christian University and has served as news director for NPR and PBS stations around Texas and The West, including: KUNR-FM in Reno, Nev.; KNPB-TV in Reno, Nev.; and KWBU-TV/FM in Waco, Texas. He...